


As the World Caves In

by thatsouldoesntexist



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: (y/n) is a badass, Action, Action/Adventure, Adventure, Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Angst, Attack on titan apocalypse au, Eventual Romance, F/M, Modern AU, Modern Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan, Romance, Zombie Apocalypse, attack on titan - Freeform, everyone is a mess, levi is a big dumb, shingeki no kyojin - Freeform, very angsty
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2020-11-09
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:40:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,877
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27482863
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatsouldoesntexist/pseuds/thatsouldoesntexist
Summary: The old way of living is gone. And a new order arises. A group of survivors must fight to live in a hellish world of chaos and man-eating creatures.
Relationships: Levi/Reader
Kudos: 6
Collections: Attack on Titan/Shingeki no Kyojin





	1. Chapter one

𝙄'𝙢 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙖 𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙄 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄'𝙢 𝙙𝙖𝙢𝙣𝙚𝙙   
𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙢 𝙩𝙤 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙄 𝙖𝙢

•••••••

For Levi, things have always had ends. His mother, Isabel, and Farlan. The list went on. Nothing seemed to last in his life. As much as he would hate to admit it, he felt begrudgingly assigned to believe nothing ever would. He still had Erwin and Hanji though.

_For how long?_

He always had that cycling through his head. Levi could put that up with his most recurring thoughts. Those three words had put him into an aloof nature, portraying a face of calm. It was better that way.

He figured the less he pretended to care would eventually turn into him believing that he really didn't. Eventually, he had decided long ago. It never got through to him. Because he always seemed to feel for whatever sorry bastard's life had been torn apart by the creatures. It wasn't too deep, it was human emotion. He knew that.

Levi also knew trying to get attached to someone was stupid. In a world full of unstable and chaotic ways of living, man-eating creatures, and who knew what else. It wasn't a good idea. Whoever he decided to put his attention and care into could die at any moment. The world wasn't safe. Granted it never was.

Levi swore by this and thus he promised he would never let his emotions cloud his judgment.

That was, until (Y/n) came along.


	2. Chapter two

𝙅𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙨𝙖𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙙, 𝙬𝙚'𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙

••••••••

(Y/n) (L/n) had joined the group Levi had been running with a year later after the 'Great Separation' (or so what the local survivors called it) had happened

The Great Separation was basically the military taking over after the man-eating creatures came. They were created from a science experiment gone wrong. And they broke out and sort of took over the world for lack of better terms. The military took charge and took only a certain amount of people to a safe quarantined area.   
After that, they basically left whoever wasn't taken to fend for themselves. However, before they left, the military promised if anyone ever found the quarantine area they would be let in. It had become every survivor's dream to find that said area. However, no one had yet.

When (Y/n) had first joined the group, Levi instantly held a grudge against her. She was dangerous, she could have been infected from a bite of the creatures. However, even after she was found clean of bites, Levi still didn't welcome her. It wasn't until they were sent on a mission together. (Y/n) had a good knowledge of that certain area, Levi was the best soldier they had.

When they both had come back from that mission, they both seemed to hold respect for each other. Surprisingly, even sort of a friendship. They became close and each other's confidant. To this day, no one knew what had happened on that supply run except for the two.

Along with Levi and (Y/n), the group consisted of many people. For starters, the earliest members of the group. Erwin was the leader, making decisions for supply runs and overall group safety. Hanji was the intelligent self-proclaimed scientist of the group who did the very best to find a cure.

Mike, a strong silent type who used his ability to smell danger a mile away to also protect the group. He also was skilled in all forms of combat. Nanaba, Mike's girlfriend, a former military soldier who went to the populated areas after she heard what had happened. She made it her goal to try to rescue whoever she could.

Eld, a friend of Levi's and one of his trusted 'squad' members. Oluo, another squad member, he had a fiery temper that would get him into trouble one day. Gunther, a very quiet man, but he was able to make quick decisions that others would struggle with and prevent a lot of deaths. Earning him a spot on the squad. Finally, the squad ended with Petra, a sweet woman who had the ability to take down a man twice her size. She was a force to be reckoned with, however, she was a very lovely person.

Then there were the younger members. Eren had been found with his small group of Mikasa and Armin. Eren has begged passionately to be allowed to join as well as his friends. Erwin saw potential in each of them and allowed the three to enter the group. Eren had also convinced Erwin to go back for their other friends. Jean, Sasha, Connie, Reiner, Annie, Bertolt, Ymir, and Historia.

However, Annie, Bertolt, and Reiner found they worked better as a trio, and bid farewell to the group. Promising if they ever found quarantine they would come back for the rest of the group. And that was that.

Now the remaining group members continued to survive and tried to search for the quarantine zone.


	3. Chapter three

𝙄𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙤𝙧   
𝙄𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙙

••••••••••••••

You walk up the stairs to the roof of the hospital. Once reaching the door that allowed you out, you opened it. The roof was empty, it was eerily quiet. The dead city sprawls out beneath you. You felt like you were some sort of ancient god looking down on humankind. The sky is orange and pink, with clouds streaking across the horizon. It's almost time for the sun to set. You then turn to the opposite side of your whereabouts and see a man sitting near the edge. Back turned to you. Once you caught a glimpse of the black hair, you knew it was Levi.

Walking over to him, you sat down next to him. However, scooting the tiniest bit back, to avoid the fear and anxiety accompanied by high spaces.

"Never liked heights. Don't know why you're so close to the edge." You say staring at the sunset. Some random bird chirps off in the distance. Those were rare at times. The entire cityscape below them was empty and silent, giving it a very eerie ambiance.

"Then you didn't have to come up here," Levi replies, turning to you. You give him a look. "I thought you needed some company. You always go off by yourself and we don't spend a ton of time together as friends do. So yeah." You say to Levi.

"I don't remember agreeing to be your friend, shit face," Levi says while turning back to the now approaching night.

"You really don't have a say in the matter, you're my friend regardless of what you think really." You laugh while gently punching his shoulder. Levi nods, his face dead of all emotion. He stands and turns to you.

"Come on shit face, let's get inside. We've got planning for the next supply run tomorrow and probably watch tonight. Don't want to miss that." Levi says, while gently nudging you with his foot. You get up and follow Levi inside.

You two walk down the stairs to the third floor which is where everyone currently resides. Everyone basically sleeps in the break room, which is connected to another room that hadn't been finished. Must have been abandoned when running from human-eating monsters became a top priority. That's where the group set up camp.

Your and Levi's shoes make a clomping noise against the tile floor. Even though your just wearing sneakers also sporting an (f/c) tank top with an oversized (f/c) hoodie and black jeans. Levi is wearing combat boots. As well as a black zip-up hoodie, a grey t-shirt, and black jeans. Everyone wore sneakers or combat boots. They were good for running.

The hallway was lit up with dim fluorescent lights. After long tiresome hours and a lot of help, Hanji and Armin finally got the generator to work again.

You reach the shared area and Erwin greets Levi and you.   
"You both have 2-4 watch. Historia and Ymir will take the next shift from you. Until then get some sleep." You smile at the idea. Sleep sounded wonderful right now.

You grab Levi's arm and pull him along to the giant shared room with the entire group. There were multiple exits, making it the safest place to sleep.

When you enter the break room, you first see Petra, Nanaba, and Eld playing a game that looks like poker on a table with chairs all around it. Petra has a smile that suggests she's winning while she deals another hand. Eld sports a sour look and Nanaba is laughing at him. Petra turns to you and smiles. A fluorescent light shines over the table.

"You two are completely hopeless." Petra gently slaps Eld's shoulder. Eld glares at her but eventually smiles.

"I'm not that bad," Nanaba grumbles. Petra laughs.   
"Tell that to the 300 dollars you just lost." Nanaba feigns contempt.

"Good luck you two." You giggle. Levi walks on ahead. You follow after. Oluo, Gunther, and Mike were nowhere to be seen in the rest of the room. They must have been on watch. You glance at the clock on the wall, seeing it was only 8:20. They had two more hours to go. The next group would go out for three hours. And then so forth. Till morning

You two continue into the second unfinished room, the room is sprawled with sleeping bags and people. The light from the previous room spills gently into the second area. Showing the inhabitants of the room.   
In the far corner, Historia is fast asleep, snuggling with Ymir. Ymir out cold as well. Eren and Jean are cuddling, they seem to always end up next to each other in their sleep.   
It's quite funny when they wake up and shout at each other. But it continues to happen every night.  
Armin is sitting outside the doorway reading a book aloud in the light provided from the break room. Mikasa sits attentively and listens.  
Connie and Sasha are back to back in the middle of the room and snoring softly.

Finally, you find your and Levi's corner. Levi had picked out the cleanest part of that room and continues to tidy it up. Even though your corner consists of two sleeping bags and a few other belongings.

You settle down in your sleeping bag and snuggle. Levi sits on top of his. You frown, "At least attempt to sleep tonight." Levi slightly raises his eyebrow at your suggestion.  
"It's not that I don't try to sleep, it's just that I can't. Insomnia is a bitch, shit face." Levi says, looking disgusted at the invisible dust that must be overpowering the room.

"Whatever you say, remember to wake me." You settle into your pillow and close your eyes.

———————

"-iot, wake...-" Someone is shaking you, you sigh and push at the hand. A sharp prick of pain makes you open your eyes. That's when you sort of find Levi already on his feet. It's too dark to tell right now. The lights must have all been shut off and the windows show it's pitch blackout. You sigh again and shuffle out of your sleeping back.

"Took you long enough," Levi whispers as you get to your feet. You give him a look that you know he can't see but you don't really care. You carefully maneuver around sleeping bags, everyone had become good at it from at least a week of practice. This had been the group's hideout for about two and a half weeks.

Supplies were easily found, but the group had run out so tomorrow would be time to plan the next one. You both find Petra waiting for you to take both of you down to the first floor. She was holding a flashlight. A pistol was strapped to her right thigh and a sheathed knife on her left. Levi switched on his flashlight and you all walked down together.

Erwin and the group decided that it was better to watch in groups of two or three. That way more than one person would still be down on the first floor in case of an emergency.

When you all finally reach down to the first floor, you greet Eld. After Petra and Eld head back upstairs, Levi and you patrol the area, checking all entrances and exits as quietly and stealthily as possible. When you see there are no creatures. Relief floods you. Nothing to deal with tonight.

You both then walk back to the control room where the security cameras monitors are. Levi leans against the wall, steel eyes glued to the black and white screens.

You do the same however sitting in a chair, the quiet is nice and it's almost enough to put you to sleep. But Levi stops all dreams of that by flicking you in the ear every time you start to droop forward.

"Oi, we're here to make sure the group is safe not hibernate." Levi had said at the start of the shift. You weren't even sure if Levi could even comprehend the wonders of sleep, probably not seeing as he was a vampire.

About 20 minutes had gone by, You had got to thinking. What would happen when the group reached the quarantine zone? Well, that was if they ever did.

"Levi, do you think we'll ever make it to the quarantine zone?"You ask, for a while, Levi doesn't say anything, just remains fixated on the screens. However, finally, he says something.  
"I don't know idiot. If we keep having to put your sleepy ass on watch all the time I doubt it." Levi says calmly. You sigh, you had hope. You hope that the future would be able to go back to normal and no one would ever have to worry about being eaten from one day to the next.

"Maybe we will. I'm not overly hopeful. But I'm sure one day, one day (L/n)." Levi says just then. "Maybe we will." He repeats with a softer tone. The monitors whirring soon become the only noise in the room.

Your watch ends without a single problem,   
You go upstairs to grab Historia and Ymir. The two wake up and follow you down to the first floor. Levi and you head upstairs to go back to sleep.

Finally, everything seemed to be fine. And you settle into your sleeping bag again. Levi sighs and leans against the wall.


	4. Chapter four

𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙄'𝙢 𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙚𝙣𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙩𝙤 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙄'𝙡𝙡 𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙪𝙥 𝙙𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜   
𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙜 𝙚𝙣𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙩𝙤 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣

•••••••••••••

**(Third-person POV)**

Levi didn't fall back asleep. He was sitting against the wall behind him. He glanced down at (Y/n). She was curled up into a ball and her breath was coming out softly and slowly. It was about 5 in the morning when he had last checked his watch.

The blue light of early, early morning illuminates the room just slightly. Everything feels peaceful and at ease. Perfect enough for Levi to try to lull himself to sleep finally.

He was almost settled into his sleeping back when Hanji darted into the room screaming for everyone to get up and move. Levi didn't hesitate to kick (Y/n) and everyone else awake. He packed his stuff together in a hurry.

"Come on!!" Hanji's voice was shrill. (Y/n) made sure everyone in that room was out before she ran after Levi and the others.

Hanji led them to the stairs turning down a different way than normal. The group was going down to the basement. Levi turns at the sound of gunshots. He sees Petra, Eld, Gunther, Erwin, Oluo, Mike, and Nanaba charging after them. Nanaba fires some shots above her and a couple of bodies hit the ground with a thud. The stairs seem to go on forever. The gray cement steps spiraling down into a chaotic whirlwind.

At last, Hanji kicks open the exit door. It's clear of the creatures. No one wasted any time. They all climbed into different vehicles. Erwin, Hanji, Mike, and Nanaba in the green Jeep. Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Jean, and Sasha in an Expedition. (Y/n), Petra, Eld, and Gunther in a pickup truck. Levi, Connie, Historia, Ymir, and Oluo in a minivan.

Erwin drives off quickly, and everyone follows him. (Y/n) behind Erwin. Mikasa behind (Y/n), and Oluo behind Mikasa.

(Y/n) feels safe driving until Petra yells that the creatures were almost forming a blockade in front of them. Enough the blue light slowly turning brighter and the headlights outline the creatures. (Y/n) then proceeded to almost have a panic attack when she saw a row of the dead creatures charge sideways.  
The creatures were almost in front of them, trying to cut them off.   
"Everyone! Don't shoot unless you absolutely have to! I'm gonna see if I can run them down, if that doesn't work, you all know what to do!" (Y/n) screams above the roaring in her ears. Petra cracks open the window, enough to stick her gun out. Eld and Gunther the following suit.

The wall surges closer, and that's when every emotion is gone from (Y/n)'s mind. The only thought in her head is to push down on the gas. So she does just that. Each sickening crunch and gunshot fuels that increase in speed. The creatures are like speed bumps the size of mountains. (Y/n) bounces up from the seat and grips the steering wheel to keep herself steady. The seatbelts help enough but (Y/n) continues to violently bounce. Eld is clinging to the seat. Gunther, the handle from the ceiling. Petra is basically flying at this point.

Soon enough the bumps stop and the creatures are gone from sight. Everyone in the truck lets out a very extravagant sigh of relief. (Y/n) also hadn't realized her hands were almost numb from how tight she had been gripping on the steering wheel. She flexes them while continuing to drive. The headlights showed the dead city in light.

Erwin finally arrives at the supply area which is basically a gigantic shopping center. He hops out walking to (Y/n)'s truck. His group of people darts into the store after unlocking it. Erwin found a way to seal the store so the creatures couldn't get in.

Erwin motions for (Y/n) to get out.  
"Get your people in the store, your group is in charge of getting as much water as you can." (Y/n) nods, yelling for her group to get out and head into the shopping center.

Once inside, they find the light switch. Once the lights flicker on, they cock their guns just in case. (Y/n) and Gunther ran into different isles until they found the drinks. They carry as many cases and jugs of water as they can. Petra and Eld follow soon after.

Levi rushes toward (Y/n). He holds some of the water.  
"We're gonna stay here for now so stash this somewhere we can get it to the cars easily." Levi orders. (Y/n) nods and Petra follows Levi and the girl toward the entrance. Once everyone is inside. Erwin locks the doors. Everyone lets out another long sigh of relief.

"Gather the rest of your assigned supplies, enough for another next trip. Then we'll discuss what to do next." Erwin says. (Y/n) nods and her group walks back to the drink aisle.

After finally stocking up. The group settles into a meal sitting in chairs or leaning against the shelves. Erwin waits for them to finish eating whatever they grabbed from the shelves that weren't expired.

"Now, I think this has been a long time coming. But instead of just merely jumping from place to place. We're going to find the quarantine zone." Erwin's announcement draws silence over the group.

"Now I know it's mostly regarded as a myth, but I have a feeling it's not," Erwin speaks with deep sincerity. Levi who had been leaning against a shelf on the left of Erwin lets out a small 'tch' sound.  
"And what proof do you exactly have for this bold statement?" Levi says matter-of-factly. Hanji turns to the man. Everyone does. They're all keen to hear what more Levi has to say.

"When's the last time we've seen survivors other than us Levi?" Erwin replies, keeping a steady eye with the man to his left. Levi shifts and furrows his eyebrows.

"Yeah? Well, that could just mean they're about as resourceful as shit. For all we know, the hordes of the creatures probably got them." Levi studies Erwin. Oluo murmurs his agreement from the corner.

Petra stands up, crossing her arms.   
"Exactly when's the last time you've seen _hordes_ of creatures other than a few hours ago Levi? We haven't seen activity in days, it's been so quiet. Ask Hanji." Petra's eyes go from Levi to Hanji.

Hanji nods, now the attention shifts to the brunette.  
"It's true Levi. I've always been studying the movements. It's irregular. But not extremely out of the ordinary. Back when we first started, the creatures always seemed to come and go.  
They're always there yes, but sometimes fewer than usual. I have data that shows we've gone two weeks at most without seeing more than a small handful of creatures." Hanji explains to the group.

Levi frowns, Erwin can sense the attention snaps back to him.  
"If we haven't seen a horde except for today, it seems these two weeks will be our window of opportunity," Erwin says.

(Y/n) looks at Erwin, then Levi. He catches her gaze. In his eyes, (Y/n) can sense he wants to fight back but his faith in Erwin is pushing that urge down.

"We leave tomorrow at dawn. Until then, get some sleep everyone." Erwin ends the discussion with a curt smile. He then announces the people participating in the watch that night.

(Y/n) stands up, picking up her trash and throwing it away. She looks to find a place to sleep when Levi comes up to her.

"Let's talk." Levi grabs her arm and leads her away from the group.


	5. Chapter five

𝙒𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙜𝙤 𝙗𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙬𝙚 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙩  
𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙬𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙬𝙚 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙭𝙩

••••••••••••

**(Third-person POV)**

(Y/n) follows Levi down to the furniture area. They walk to the end of the aisle and sit down on a couch that was made for display. (Y/n) stretches back, lying down on her back. Head against the armrest on her side, one leg propped up on the couch. Her other leg off on the floor.

Levi glances at her seating arrangements with boredom. But he rests his head against the back of the couch and looks at (Y/n).  
"What did you want to talk about?" She asks her friend.

Levi sighs, closing his eyes. "Getting to the quarantine seems risky, doesn't it?" (Y/n) says out of the blue. Levi rubs his eyes, he looks exhausted. "Of course it's fucking risky, but this may be our only chance," Levi replies, groaning quietly. (Y/n) nods.

"And you're completely on Erwin's side for this? No questions asked?" (Y/n) says, hearing Levi shift in his seat.

"What choice do I have? He's the leader and probably our best chance at survival." Levi pauses.

(Y/n) mutters a small agreement. Levi continues shortly after. "I'm just saying the man always has some extravagant plan that seems over the top and dangerous but it always works out in the end. You know this." "Yeah, when I first joined I wasn't too sure about his motives, but he's an intelligent man. I trust him." (Y/n) admits, she also observes Levi doesn't respond. Which probably means he agrees. The light above them fizzles out, leaving the two in a dim area, seeing as the aisle next to them was still lit. "Well at least we can sleep better." (Y/n) notes, Levi rolls his eyes. "Is sleep all you think about idiot?" Levi runs a hand through his hair.

(Y/n) attempts to hit him playfully but he's just perfectly out of her reach. "What happened to shit face?" (Y/n) laughs. Levi looks up at the ceiling, "Personally I think you were beginning to think 'shit face' was a term of endearment. And I can't have you thinking that."

"Stupid smart-ass 5'3 loser." (Y/n) turns her head to the side to glare at him with a frown.

"You've been getting really creative with words lately, I can actually understand you now. It's not just caveman growling." Levi sounds amused at his statement. (Y/n) rolls her eyes and shakes her head. "You're the perfect mix between a dumbass and a smart-ass. Some days you're like a 'smumbass'. Yeah a 'smumbass'." (Y/n) giggles.

"And here we go again with the caveman growling." Levi turns to his (h/c) companion.

(Y/n) smiles and stretches, her eyes wandering around the aisle. Looking for a comfortable blanket. She locates a blue one Levi shakes his head and closes his eyes. (Y/n) yawns and gets up to go grab the blue blanket stocked on the shelves. She is happily surprised when it's the softest thing she's felt in a while. (Y/n) brings it back to the couch where she finds Levi almost sleeping.

She sits and pulls it over Levi and her. She rests her head on Levi's shoulder and snuggles into the blanket. The store was a lot colder than she had remembered. "G'night midget-smart-ass." (Y/n) mumbles sleepily as her eyes droop. Levi shifts his body a bit and then lets out a small exhale.

"Night shit face." He also closes his eyes and tries to let sleep take him. (Y/n) can swear before she falls asleep, she feels Levi's headrest on hers.


	6. Chapter six

𝙀𝙢𝙥𝙩𝙮 𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙚, 𝙢𝙮 𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙.  
𝙒𝙚 𝙢𝙚𝙚𝙩 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣.  
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

You awake with a yawn, rubbing your eyes. You turn to see Levi getting up from the couch. He adjusts his pistol in his holster. He turns to you, eyes studying you. You smile at him. Levi motions for you to get up. So you do. You brush yourself off and stretch.

You grab the blanket and follow Levi down toward the entrance. The empty aisles remind you of a former life. When you were a kid, just shopping with your mom. Now seeing the almost bare shelves from survivors seems to hit a chord with you. You had a life before this.

But now what did it matter? It was behind you now. Your old life was dead. And maybe it was best to keep it that way.

"You gonna stand there all day? We've got loading to do." Levi's voice breaks you from your reminiscing. You follow him. The lights above you are dull, but the sun filtering in from the windows brightens up the giant shopping center a little bit. Everyone else seems to be out of the store because all that you can hear inside the building is the soft thud of Levi's boots and your sneakers.

You two arrive at the entrance. Levi pushes the door open, it makes a scraping sound that makes you cringe.

The sun spills into the store. The sky is blue and the air is sweet. Besides the fact, there isn't a single sound except for the party of people traveling with you. It's an eerie emptiness even though they're people talking. The vacant shopping lot and the building are devoid of any animal. No birds, nothing. The world seems to become more unnatural and natural each day, you note.

The vegetation had grown a bit around the store, vines creep up the cement walls, and weeds are everywhere. You step on a few on your way out to the lot. Levi walks off to probably go see who needed help loading. Everyone is packing up. You walk over to Historia and help her load up medical supplies.

"Do you think this is a crazy idea?" Historia asks while arranging the bandages in a first aid kit. She then stores it in a larger container.

"Yeah. But Erwin's had crazier. We'll make it through this one too." You say, putting away the anti-bacterial creams in a neat row.

"You'll be fine, as long as I'm around." Ymir pipes up, smirking. Historia smiles and closes the storage container.

"I'm gonna go check to see if there is anything else I need to do." You leave the two and walk over to Erwin who is glancing at a map, Mike is tracing a path on the paper.

"Anything else I need to do?" You ask Erwin. He looks down and turns to everyone else.

"We should be good. Just get whoever you want in your truck." You nod, walking over to your truck. In the back there was mostly food loaded up, tied down. Connie closes the trunk and hops down from the tailgate. You walk over him.

"You wanna ride with me? I'm trying to find people who are a little entertaining." You smile, Connie shakes his head, smiling back. "Sasha and Armin want me to tag along with them, sorry." 

"Your loss. There's still _plenty_ of people who _love_ to be around me." You elbow Connie and he grins and then waves you goodbye. He heads towards the awaiting Armin.

You look around. Levi is going, you decide for him. Other than that whoever else wanted to come with you. This would be a long trip. Levi, Nanaba, Mike, Hanji, Petra, Eld, Gunther, Oluo, and Erwin were all pretty experienced at long trips. They had been around longer than you. You could always count on one of them to help. But you can also hold your own.

"Levi! Petra! Jean!" You randomly shout out the last two names. It would be an okay trip. Petra and Jean would chat with you while Levi would look bored very dramatically out the window. You could handle that.

Levi, Jean, and Petra walk over to you. Jean climbs in the back, Petra climbs in after him. Levi gets in on the passenger side.

You gave everything one last glance, making sure everything seems okay. The collective starting of everyone's engine answers your question. So you get into your truck, waiting till Erwin heads forward. Looking into your rearview mirror, Jean has already settled into a comfortable position to sleep. Petra somehow has a coloring book and a backpack of a bunch of things to entertain herself. Levi lays his head back on the seat and does exactly what you expected him to do.

He turns to you, giving you a small look of annoyance. "What?" You shake your head while smiling and start the truck. Erwin goes forward and you follow right after.

__________________

"Where are we now?" Levi mumbles from his perch next to the window.  
"According to the map... a mile from New York City." Jean pipes up from the backseat followed by the crinkling of a paper map. 

Levi sighs and repositions himself. Petra does the same. You look ahead at the long stretch of highway in front of you, sometimes you have to swerve to avoid cars that had been long abandoned. All of them were either in a large wreck. It looked like either it was caused by accident or the creatures got to them.

The landscape was growing back to the way it was before man had taken over. It was almost haunting in a certain way. You heard the sound of distant thunder and sighed. That meant a storm and you weren't overly fond of driving in the pouring rain. During an apocalypse for that matter as well.

Before you could be even more filled with disappointment about the weather, you saw Erwin's car slow.

"What's the man doing now?" Levi wonders out loud, leaning forward and his hand on the dash.

"Don't know." You say back, squinting ahead.

"Should we stop?" Jean states. Suddenly the sound of whizzing bullets and a windshield that fills with cracks make all of you freeze.

"Goddamn bandits! Everyone arm up!" You shout. The resounding cocking of pistols meets your ears in response.

"Fuck!" Jean yells as another bullet smashes against the truck.

"Drive!" Petra screams over the pounding of the bullets. She then opens her window and begins firing shots. Levi does the same.

"Hold on everyone!" You slam the gas, the windshield isn't completely broken. You can still see through some of the cracks. Erwin's car is long gone, you hope they aren't dead. The bullets keep raining and it's becoming harder to drive.

You almost swerve off the road, when the car jolts up and down. 

"Did I just hit someone?!" You rapidly turn the wheel to get back on the road. Petra ducks back into the truck.

"I think so- watch out!" Petra shrieks and you narrowly miss a stop sign. You're clearly in the city now. You see a building and you turn abruptly into the alleyway. You stop behind a dumpster and open your door. You duck behind it and peer out.

So far nothing but quiet and your party's heavy breathing.

"Where did they go," Jean asks, getting out of the truck too. Petra and Levi follow after you. And step behind the front door of the car, next to you.

"I don't like how quiet it is." Petra states. You see it's clear from behind the truck and step out.

"Come on." You say to the rest of the group. Levi grabs your arm with a death grip. 

"Oi, idiot. That's a suicide mission. Stay here and we wait for a little longer." Levi lets go and peers out as well.

Standing there, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. You looked above you to the buildings to make sure no stray bandit was waiting to ambush you. A soda can rattles against the tar as the wind slightly pushes it.

"We can't just stay here though," Jean mutters. You slip out despite Levi's words coming out in death threats.

Literally, nothing happens. You turn and beckon everyone out. Petra follows you second, then Jean and finally Levi. You all stare around the area. Walking out from the alley you see a lot of dust being blown around. You step into the road. Moving around the abandoned cars.

"Surprisingly we haven't seen any creatures," Petra says, her voice echoing around the buildings.

"Didn't you hear Hanji? Two weeks is our window of time." Jean responds, searching around the area.

"Hanji said we'd still see them just not hordes. Hopefully Hanji's right." Petra sighs.

Levi makes the noise with his mouth, "Hanji usually is right." 

You glance up at the sun to see what time it is. Looks to be about 3:00 p.m. Just as you turn around to announce it to the group, a bullet narrowly misses your foot.

"Fuck! Scatter!" More dust blows up and you duck behind a car. You look out trying to find something or someone to shoot at. But there's so much dust you can't see anyone.

"Shit." You mutter under your breath.


End file.
